Ballot Initiative Alert: AK-Measure 3, OR-Measure 25, SD-Measure 10

In response to convictions of former state legislators in Alaska, liberal organizations and labor unions have placed the "Clean Elections Act," Ballot Initiative #3, on the August 26th primary ballot, which would institute public funding for legislative campaigns. Taxpayers in Maine and Arizona, states which have recently approved public financing, are learning that their money, which could be going towards legitimate government priorities like infrastructure improvement and education, are instead financing partisan politics.

Public financing actually decreases competitiveness in elections, which decreases choice for voters in a democracy. Incumbents in Arizona were re-elected at a higher rate after public financing was enacted; the number of candidates fell from 247 to 195 according to the Goldwater Institute. Furthermore, public financing limits a challenger’s ability to communicate with voters. By limiting the amount of money that can be spent in campaigns, it limits the amount of information that voters receive.

Voters in Oregon have a chance to prohibit public financing in November. Ballot Measure #25 would ban the use of public resources for political campaigns. Bill Sizemore, the initiative’s sponsor, tried twice to pass similar measures within the last decade, only to be defeated by labor union money.

If voters want tackle corruption in government, they should look at South Dakota's Open and Clean Government Act, Initiated Measure #10. It would not only prohibit taxpayer funded campaigns and lobbying. It would also create "information on state contracts that would be available for review on a searchable website."

BOTTOM LINE: When it comes to solving corruption and lack of ethics in government, public financing of campaigns is the wrong answer; instead, the conservative movement should support policies that increase transparency in campaigns and in government.